Paola Pugsley – författare

The Black Sea, hostile and hospitable by turns, a land of towering mountain peaks, green tea plantations and thick forests, has always attracted civilisation to its shores: Hittites, Greeks and Romans, Seljuks and Ottomans, Georgians and Armenians, Genoese and Venetians, have all left their traces here. This scholarly and intrepid guide visits all the provinces of the Turkish Black Sea region, delving into their history and discovering all the present-day reasons for a traveller to go there. There are many.

A guide to the early history and archaeological sites of Turkey's Mediterranean coast, covering the ancient provinces of Lycia, Pamphylia, Cilicia and part of the Pisidia Heritage Trail. Included are Cnidus, site of Praxiteles' famous nude statue of Aphrodite; Myra and Xanthus and the rock tombs of Lycia; the city of Antalya; the ruins of Perge and Side; Alanya with its impressive walls; the aite of Selinus (where Trajan died); Silifke (where Frederick Barbarossa drowned); Tarsus (where St Paul was born) and the bay of Iskenderun, where Alexander the Great defeated Darius III of Persia at the Battle of Issus. The guide ends at the Syrian border with the city of Antakya, ancient Antioch, near which St Simeon Stylites and other early Christian ascetics lived their lives on top of tall pillars.

A guide to the cities and archaeological sites of Turkey's Aegean coast, from earliest times through the Byzantine and Ottoman periods and up to the present day. Included are the famous sites of Troy, Pergamon and Ephesus, as well as Miletus, Priene, Didyma and Aphrodisias in the Meander valley; the hot springs of Pamukkale and the modern cities of Izmir (ancient Smyrna) and Bodrum (ancient Halicarnassus, site of the famous Mausoleum, one of the Seven Wonders of the World).